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1846: St Stephen's
on the Green, Middlebury, Vermont, USA

Mystery Worshipper:
Inscriber.The church:St Stephen's
on the Green, Middlebury, Vermont, USA.Denomination:
The Episcopal Church, Diocese
of Vermont.The building:
St Stephen's is a gray stone Gothic structure built in 1827,
with very consistent-looking additions (due to its historic
building status) made in recent years. Outside by its windows
(not of "real" stained glass but painted, as I was told) was
some scaffolding, as the windows required maintenance. I did
not see the main sanctuary, but went from the foyer through
a substantial library to the sea-green chapel were the service
was held. The church:
Their website describes a congregation well-endowed with children
and parishioners of all ages, although I did not meet very many.
Four priests serve this church. The congregation seem to be
active in local outreach, and last year sent a volunteer crew
to Nicaragua.The neighborhood:
Middlebury is a small college town in west-central Vermont,
having a fine view of the Green Mountains. As per its name,
St Stephen's lies on the Green, a park-like area in the center
of town. Other churches surround the Green: a tall-spired Congregational
church is atop a hill at one end, while two Baptist churches
flank the other. At one end of the Green, right up against the
church, lies a deep gully through which runs a railroad line.
A little past the tracks is Otter Creek, crossed by a bridge
just before it reaches a waterfall.The cast:
The Very Revd Diane Nancekivell, retired dean of Trinity Cathedral,
Trenton, New Jersey, now assisting clergy at St Stephen's.The date & time:
November 18, 2009, 12.05pm.

What was the name of the service?
Holy Eucharist.

How full was the building?
The entire congregation consisted of myself, five middle-aged
to elderly ladies, Dean Nancekivell, and a small tan-furred
dog who seemed quite accustomed to church. But as the service
was held in a small chapel in the second floor, this was enough
to fill the room.

Did anyone welcome you personally?
I was warmly welcomed many times: first by the two ladies who
led me to the chapel, and again as each additional worshiper
made her way in.

Was your pew comfortable?
No pews, but fold-up plastic chairs – comfortable enough for
the short service.

How would you describe the pre-service
atmosphere?
We talked quietly among ourselves as we filtered in, until the
officiant arrived.

What were the exact opening words of the
service?
"Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit."

What books did the congregation use during the
service?
The 1979 Book of Common Prayer, and a printout of Psalm
122.

What musical instruments were played?
None.

Did anything distract you?
The traffic had been surprisingly loud for a small Vermont town,
but thankfully it was much softened inside. A phone rang in
another room. As this was the first Episcopal service I had
attended in years, finding the right pages was a bit troublesome.

Was the worship stiff-upper-lip, happy clappy, or
what?
The liturgy was Rite II of the Book of Common Prayer,
with the creed, the confession, and more cut out. It was quite
informally done, with the officiant midway through the service
appointing one to "pick any prayer" to read!

Exactly how long was the sermon?
7 minutes.

On a scale of 1-10, how
good was the preacher?
6  Dean Nancekivell spoke well, but given the size of
the group it was more of a intimate talk than a sermon.

In a nutshell, what was
the sermon about?
Dean Nancekivell spoke of Hilda of Whitby, the saint commemorated
that day. Of Anglo-Saxon royal blood, Hilda became a nun, and
later abbess of Whitby. She took part in the Synod of Whitby
in 664, where the English Church resolved, with her support,
to follow the Roman, rather than the Celtic, use. This resulted
in the tragic loss of Celtic feminine spirituality to the male-dominated
Church.

Which part of the service
was like being in heaven?
When all else seemed doomed, I was greatly lifted by the Lord's
Prayer said in traditional language. And any worship with fellow
Christians is at least a foretaste of heaven, this one especially
so with the sense of community it invoked.

And which part was like
being in... er... the other place?
I'm afraid it was just too "modern" for me. The celebrant used
eucharistic prayer C, but instead of asking the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob to open our eyes, we prayed instead to the
God of Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah (although Dean Nancekivell
hesitated a moment as if she couldn't at first remember their
names!). The translation (if it can be called one) of Psalm
122 spoke of "harmony with the Cosmos" while somehow not mentioning
God. Also, one of the worshipers kept saying "God's" whenever
the dreaded masculine pronoun came up, while the rest of us
said "his". The most painful part was that the day before I
had bought, in a used book store, a copy of the 1928 Book
of Common Prayer (printed in 1956) which had been discarded
by St Stephen's Church! Reading its beautiful lines, I could
only think how the mighty have fallen.

What happened when you
hung around after the service looking lost?
The small congregation dispersed rather quickly, but I spoke
with some people for a few minutes in the foyer (and sneaked
in my Mystery Worshipper card by a stack of magazines, there being no offering).

How would you describe the after-service
coffee?
No refreshments were served.

How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
5  In fairness I really can't judge it on such a small
service, but from the hints I received I don't think I'd be
entirely at home.

Did the service make you feel glad to be a
Christian?
Yes, despite all else.

What one thing will you remember about all this in seven days' time?
The small amount, and friendly community, of the worshipers.

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